Homeowners Insurance in
California

For homes, condos, apartments, cooperatives, and renters

California homeowners insurance provides financial
protection against disasters. A standard policy insures the home itself
and the things you keep in it.

Homeowners insurance is a package policy. This means that it covers
both damage to your property and your liability or legal responsibility
for any injuries and property damage you or members of your family cause
to other people. This includes damage caused by household pets.

Damage caused by most disasters is covered but there are exceptions.
The most significant are damage caused by floods, earthquakes and poor
maintenance. You must buy two separate policies for flood and earthquake
coverage. Maintenance-related problems are the homeowners'
responsibility.

A person who owns his or her home would have a different policy from
someone who rents. Policies also differ on the amount of insurance
coverage provided. The different types of homeowners policies are
fairly standard throughout the country. However, individual states and
companies may offer policies that are slightly different or go by other
names such as “standard” or “deluxe”.

Do you need home owners insurance?

Unlike
driving a car, you can legally own a home without homeowners insurance.
But, if you have bought your home and financed the purchase with a
mortgage, your lender will most likely require you to get homeowners
insurance coverage. That’s because lenders need to protect their
investment in your home in case your house burns down or is badly
damaged by a storm, tornado or other disaster. If you live in an area
likely to flood, the bank will also require you to purchase flood
insurance. Some financial institutions may also require earthquake
coverage if you live in a region vulnerable to earthquakes. If you buy a
co-op or condominium, your board will probably require you to buy
homeowners insurance.

After your mortgage is paid off, no one will force you to buy
homeowners insurance. But it doesn’t make sense to cancel your policy
and risk losing what you’ve invested in your home.

Your level of coverage - Regardless of whether you
are an owner or renter, you have the following three options:

Actual cash value.This type of policy pays
to replace your home or possessions minus a deduction for
depreciation.

Replacement cost.The policy pays the cost
of rebuilding/repairing your home or replacing your possessions
without a deduction for depreciation.

Guaranteed or extended replacement cost.
This policy offers the highest level of protection. A guaranteed
replacement cost policy pays whatever it costs to rebuild your home
as it was before the fire or other disaster – even if it exceeds the
policy limit. This gives you protection against sudden increases in
construction costs due to a shortage of building materials after a
widespread disaster or other unexpected situations. It generally
won't cover the cost of upgrading the house to comply with current
building codes. You can, however, get an endorsement (or an addition
to) your policy called Ordinance or Law to help pay for these
additional costs. A guaranteed replacement cost policy may not be
available if you own an older home.

Some insurance companies
offer an extended, rather than a guaranteed replacement cost policy.
An extended policy pays a certain percentage over the limit to
rebuild your home. Generally, it is 20% to 25% more than the limit
of the policy. For example, if you took out a policy for $100,000,
you could get up to an extra $20,000 or $25,000 of coverage.

Even though a guaranteed/extended replacement cost policy may be a
bit more expensive, it offers the best financial protection against
disasters for your home.

We represent many of the top-rated insurance companies licensed in
California. We will help you find great homeowners insurance coverage
for your homes, apartments, condos, townhouses, or cooperatives.

Instant
quoting and buying online – Now you can purchase insurance from one
of our top rated Homeowners insurance companies online. This takes just
a few moments to complete and you can purchase your needed instantly and
securely on-line.